“The Sign of the Four” was a volume I put together to go along with the premiere of a new film of the same name appearing on the “Odyssey” cable TV network. If I remember correctly this channel later became the Hallmark channel. The story is a fairly good one in the Sherlock Holmes canon so give it a read if you can. The Adobe PDF version should be readable on almost any device.

The Sign of the Four

• Adobe PDF (.pdf)
• Microsoft Reader (.lit)
• Rocket Ebook (.rb)

Other Books - Microsoft Reader Editions

• Sherlock Holmes (.lit)
• The Moonstone (.lit)
• The Thirty Nine Steps (.lit)

COVER QUOTES
“A standout mystery.“ — Susan Wittig Albert
“Fast-paced and spirited…[A] sure-handed balance of humor and action.“ — Julie Hyzy, author of Eggsecutive Orders
“A spirited debut!“ — Cleo Coyle, author of the Haunted Bookshop Mysteries

THOUGHTS

At the very least, like any novel that manages to be accepted and published by a major publisher imprint like Berkley Prime Crime Mystery, this book is well written. The characters are well thought out and believable, unless you refuse to accept a ghost as a major character in a book. The dialogue is good and the pace of the book keeps you interested through to the end. It describes a world which is pleasant and engaging, albeit also dangerous, to live in and inhabit through the words of the author. The plot of the crime is fairly complicated and is not immediately solved. It certainly did not end up on my waste basket shelf (I find it hard to throw any book into the trash, even when I feel that way), unlike some recent “urban fantasy” books I’ve read.

The book first attracted my attention because I am an amateur artist myself. I thought it would be interesting to see how a writer might integrate Art into a crime novel. However, I was somewhat disappointed by the seeming lack of emphasis on the artist angle of the book. That may have just been me as I don’t really know what I could’ve expected. Of course there were scenes of the main character involved in the work of a Police Sketch Artist. But as an artist myself I expected more of the thinking and mindset of an artist within the context of the story. I got the sense that the author may not be an artist herself and so did not write about some aspects of creating art that I might expect. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s a great idea to have a main character as a Sketch Artist. I’m glad an author made the attempt.

The main character of the book is a strong female lead that finds herself dealing with a number of dangerous situations. Her uncle has died early on in the book and she later encounters a ghost living in the home left to her by the uncle. She also inherits the uncle’s private investigation company which presents her with the case of an unsolved murder that has been ruled an accidental death. All in all there’s plenty of intrigue to keep the story going.

I also liked the main character’s approach to the difficult situations that she finds herself in. Some protagonists tend to make you want to scream out loud with exasperation and frustration at the personality quirks that the author insisted upon for them. Not so with Rory McCain, the main character. There are personality conflicts between her and the other characters but they are mostly employed in pointing out the motivations behind the various characters.

One other unique aspect of the book, for those of you who are fans of Louis L’Amour, are periodic flashbacks to the american west where the ghost that inhabits the house previously lived. These passages were well written and gave me a good sense of the historical wild west. They also served to bolster the character of the ghost and his motivations and experience. It’s very rare and hard to include a character with speech, motivations, and thinking that come from another era. But this story does that well.

I will be picking up the next book in the series when it becomes available. It promises to be another good read.

I still find a few good mystery novels around to spend my time on. As for TV, how about that “Castle“? ( Castle DVD’s, Castle Books ) Maybe not your cup of tea? What I find interesting about the show—beside the good acting, sense of humor, and good cast chemistry—is the way they have integrated the TV show with an annual published book. Supposedly the book is written by “Richard Castle” who is nothing but a character in the TV show. My money is on Michael Connelly as the real author behind the book. Anybody know for sure?

The whole “Urban Fantasy“ (UF) genre seems to have taken off but has devolved, to my thinking, into another resort for romance novels. When I first got interested in that genre it seemed the fantasy elements had more in common with mystery novels than anything else. Now when I look for my first love of the UF genre, Kat Richardson, I find her ensconced in the scifi and fantasy section of the local Borders store. Oh well. Not that I don’t like Fantasy and Science Fiction.

So if anyone is out there or comes across this, let me know how things are going. Drop me an email through the link in the sidebar.

Here’s to a good mystery!